


keep us together (running in the shadow)

by WinterSabbath



Series: Frostiron Bingo 2019 [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Asgard, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Did I Mention Angst?, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Happy Ending, Heavy Angst, Hurt Tony Stark, IN SPACE, King Loki (Marvel), M/M, Multiverse, Space Opera, Tony Stark Gets a Hug, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, alternate universe loki, as in, but it's happy okay, it depends on how you look at it - Freeform, kind of, there's an opera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-04
Updated: 2019-08-04
Packaged: 2020-07-30 20:53:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20103454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterSabbath/pseuds/WinterSabbath
Summary: Tony lost his Loki to Thanos. When he travels to a different universe to take the tesseract, Tony finds Loki as King of Asgard and wounds start to reopen and Tony has no idea what to do with the new Loki who reminded him so much of his Loki but just wasn’t the same.or the fic that features Loki as the actual King of Asgard, multiverse hopping Tony, some opera and a lot of Frostiron angst.(Space Opera au taken both literally and figuratively.)





	keep us together (running in the shadow)

**Author's Note:**

> second bingo fic. this is from square I2: Space Opera

When Tony invented the time-space GPS, he did not know multiverses existed. But when Clint had gone back to their time and reported that what he saw was the same as the past but _not exactly_, Tony realized he still had to fix the _space _part of his GPS so it would be able to not only navigate through time but through the multiverses as well.

That made things a lot more complicated. They wouldn’t really be able to tell if the universe they end up in even _has _the infinity stone they needed and that made things a lot more risky. Tony _did _create a sensor in the GPS that would detect the energy signature of a particular stone and take them to the stone in that universe.

Since there was no guarantee that two people looking for the same stone would even end up in the same place, they only assigned six people to do the job. The remaining three would stay in the compound to monitor their activity.

Tony had been assigned the tesseract.

Which is why he found himself on Asgard.

Or, at least it’s what he _assumed _to be Asgard. There wasn’t exactly a welcome sign or anything of the sort. He’s been to Asgard once before when... when Loki was still alive.

Tony shook his head. He wasn’t going to think about his dead lover right now. He can grieve again later.

However, despite the fact that he’s seen Asgard before, this wasn’t really the same Asgard. There was still the same Bifrost, there was still the medieval vibe. But there was less gold and less flashy things. And more magic, Tony realized. That was weird. In the Asgard in Tony’s universe, he knew magic was shunned for being a weak and dishonorable power (which he found completely _bullshit_, by the way).

Tony briefly wondered if Odin was still king.

His first stop, of course, was a clothing shop so that he could fit right in. He bought a change of clothes and a bag to put his old clothes in and then went on his way to where the tesseract was.

Normally, he’d ask JARVIS for help, but Asgard didn’t have any signal. All Tony could rely on was the knowledge from Loki that the tesseract used to be kept in Asgard’s vaults in the palace before Thanos.

And he’d be damned if he’d miss the palace. It was humongous and it looked so much like a pipe organ. Tony walked towards it, trying to think of ways he’d be able to get inside without being spotted. He didn’t really have much options. In fact, he didn’t have a _single _option.

“An announcement from His Majesty!” a soldier yelled. He was sitting on a horse, some sort of megaphone in his hand. Tony stopped walking, as did most of the people around him. The soldier continued, “Auditions for His upcoming opera will be held in the next

hour and he cordially invites anyone who wishes to participate. Auditions will be held at the palace.”

Tony perked up at that. That was his chance to go to the palace.

Although... what was up with the _opera? _Tony was pretty sure his universe’s Asgard didn’t have opera.

That was one of the many differences, he supposed.

Tony turned up in front of the palace a few minutes before he was supposed to and he stood beside a few other people who were presumably also going to audition. Now that he thought of it, Tony didn’t really think he had the voice for opera. He was a decent singer, but opera?

A guy behind him started belting out high notes. Tony had force down a groan.

He just needed to get inside. That was it. Get inside, steal the tesseract, get back home.

They were ushered into a cavernous room by some guard and Tony found himself sitting on a lavish couch that was decked in black and green. That should’ve been his first warning.

When it was Tony’s turn to go into a separate room for the auditions, he found himself standing in front of an extremely familiar face. And he carried Gungnir.

Tony gaped at him, stopping in his tracks. His heart was pounding at the sight of his beloved who he has not seen in over five years.

“Loki?” he squeaked out.

Loki’s gaze drifted over to him, eyebrows raised in question. He levelled Tony with a cold look of unfamiliarity. “And you are?”

That threw Tony out of his brief fantasy of _Loki being alive_. It reminded him of where he was and what he was doing here. This wasn’t _Tony’s _Loki. This was some other Loki.

_Not your Loki, Stark._

Tony grit his teeth and looked away, the sinking feeling in his stomach not leaving. “No one.”

A guard grabbed Tony by his shoulder and hauled him up. “You should treat His Majesty with respect, you peasant, lest you want to—"

“Leave him, soldier,” Loki said, waving his hand in the air. “Your name?”

“Uh...” Tony furrowed his eyebrows then said, “Anthony Howardson.” That should sound Asgardian enough, right?

“Anthony Howardson.” Loki was regarding him with curiosity and oh, how Tony has missed that look. And that voice. He has long wished to hear Loki say his name one more time. He’s missed the way _Anthony _spilled from Loki’s lips with so much _fond_. This time around, though, Loki just said it without emotion. Just another name.

“Start whenever, Howardson,” Loki said.

\--- --- --- 

Tony was no actor. Nor was he a proper singer. He was pretty sure Loki had seen that so he had no idea why he got the part.

Albeit, it was a small part, but he still got it. That meant access to the palace.

So on the first day of rehearsal, Tony found himself arriving earlier than the intended time and then roaming around the palace in hopes of finding the vault. There were a bunch of questions that still swam through his head. For example, how was Loki king? Where were Odin and Thor? Did Loki ever visit Earth?

Those weren’t his problems, though. At least, they shouldn’t be. He had more things to worry about. Like _where the fuck is the tesseract?_

“Howardson,” Loki’s posh voice announced behind him while Tony was on his way to a staircase. Tony froze in his tracks, certain he wasn’t even supposed to be here.

He’ll just say he was looking for the bathroom or something.

He turned around, “Yeah?”

Loki was still looking at him with the same curious and uncertain look he carried a day ago. He tilted his head. “Take a walk with me, Howardson.”

“Call me Anthony,” Tony blurted out and it almost came out as a plea.

“Alright, _Anthony_, you certainly are a unique Aesir,” Loki said, amused, “Come on, I wish to take a walk in the gardens. I would like some company.”

Tony looked at the staircase then back at Loki. “I suppose a walk would be nice.”

He followed Loki to the gardens and a part of Tony wanted to sit and cry. Some things do not change across multiverses and he supposed one of them is Loki’s love for Asgard’s gardens.

“Where did you grow up in, Anthony?” Loki asked casually.

Tony’s brain short-circuited. He was well-aware that Asgard had different cities but he didn’t know any of them. He’s only ever been to the palace, sue him. He did vaguely remember _his _Loki telling him about... a place.

He had to give an answer so he quickly said, “Lyngvi,” then grimaced. He wasn’t even sure if he said that right.

Loki raised an eyebrow but hummed, “Very well. How is it there?”

“Uh... warm?” Why did Tony choose to go on this walk, again?

Loki snorted. “This is Asgard, it is always warm. If you wish for cold, visit Jotunheim.”

“Do... do you visit a lot?” Tony asked. He wasn’t sure what Loki’s relationship was with Jotunheim in this universe.

“No.” Loki’s tone was cold and Tony took that as a hint to shut up. Alright, so things were still rocky with Jotunheim even in this universe. He wanted to ask if Loki was Jotunn in this universe too but Loki was already walking back to the palace. “We should begin the opera, Anthony.

“What made you start them anyway?”

Loki frowned. “It began in honor of my mother.”

“Oh...” Tony said quietly, knowing how much Frigga meant to Loki, “I’m sorry, Loki.”

“Why do you dare to call me Loki, Anthony?” he didn’t seem irritated, just curious at most, “No one ever dares.”

Tony shrugged. He didn’t have anything to say that wouldn’t expose him. “Feels right, I guess.”

“Truly a unique one,” Loki said to himself.

\--- --- --- 

Tony figured out two things during the rehearsal. One was that this wasn’t something Loki took lightly and another was this wasn’t something _anyone _on Asgard took lightly.

He was sweating so much by the time their rehearsal ended and Tony kept getting distracted by Loki and _that really wasn’t a good sign_. Especially when Loki asked him to stay when he dismissed everyone.

“You are not from here,” was the first thing out of Loki’s mouth when they were alone in the room.

Tony blinked at him. “What?”

“At first, I thought it was because you were not from Asgard but it is not just that, is it? You are not from this universe at all,” Loki said.

“Hold up, where the fuck are you getting that idea?” Okay, so maybe a part of Tony chose to neglect the fact that Loki was really smart and he saw more than what meets the eye. He was a mage, for god’s sake.

“Am I wrong?” Loki walked closer to him, eyebrows quirked.

“How did you—I never said anything,” Tony gaped at him.

“There was something... different about you when I first met you. And I was so _drawn _to you, as though I have known you from another life of some sort. As though you were a soulmate. There was so much... unfamiliar familiarity. And then you said you were from Lyngvi and that...” Loki shook his head, laughing, “There is only one being that resides in Lyngvi. My son, Fenris Wolf.”

So that’s why it was familiar. “Oh...”

“And then, I realized, no one knows where Fenrir is. No one knows Lyngvi exists. Only the gods do. And you... you are no god of this universe, Anthony Howardson. Who are you really?”

“Maybe you wanna talk about this over a cup of tea?” Tony said weakly.

Loki chuckled. “I ought to throw you into the dungeons for trespassing. Give me one reason why I should not then perhaps we can discuss this over tea.”

“Because... because I... oh!” Tony grasped the pendant that hung from his neck, tucked underneath his clothes. He prayed this universe’s Loki knew what it was. “I have this. You gave it to me.”

When he showed Loki the pendant, the mage narrowed his eyes. “Where did you get this? Did you steal it?”

“No! No, I swear to the Norns, I didn’t. You gave it to me. In our universe. It was your mother’s, right? You told me you wanted me to have it as a sign of a promise to never leave me. As a—” Tony had to stop a bit to stop his voice from cracking. “As a sign that you will always love me.”

Loki clenched his jaw then grabbed Tony by the arm. The next second, they were in Loki’s room and Tony was being unceremoniously shoved unto a chair. “Alright, Anthony. Explain. From the start.”

“I’m Tony Stark, from Earth—or Midgard—”

“Midgard? Then how—"

Tony raised a hand, “Ah, ah, wait for the story to end and then you can ask questions.” Loki glowered at him but didn’t say anything more. Tony smiled, a bit forced, and continued. “So, basically, I’m a superhero. Kind of. I’m known as Iron Man and I’m really rich. Although compared to Asgard, maybe not by much.”

“I met you when I was at a really low point in my life and you were too. I was depressed and an alcoholic and you were under some _really _intense mind control. I was the first one who figured out you weren’t yourself and then I helped you out of it and then... we spent a lot of time together and then...” Tony looked away, swallowing, “We fell in love. You told me when I was on the roof, ready to kill myself. You saved my life, Lokes.”

“We were together for a couple of years and you couldn’t bear the thought of me aging so you gave me a golden apple so that we could be together for centuries,” Tony glared at the floor then at Loki, “But you fucking son of a bitch, you decided to get yourself killed before we even reached a century! Why did you have to fucking—you didn’t need to die,” he roared, standing up and kicking away the chair, “You threw yourself in front of me so that you took the hit of Thanos’ spear instead of me! You fucking idiot!”

Loki was gazing at him intently and then he stood and Tony felt arms wrap around him, pulling him into a hug. He was crying before he even realized it.

“I miss you... Lokes, please, I miss you so much,” Tony sobbed, closing his eyes. He took a deep breath before continuing, “And—and then Thanos won... he’s this evil guy that wants to get all the infinity stones to snap half the universe away, by the way. He was behind your mind control. He won and for five years I tried... I really tried to move on.”

“And then someone pitched the idea that we could travel back in time, get the stones, and undo what he had done. But time traveling along the same timeline causes paradoxes and is practically impossible. What _was _possible, though, is to travel to other universes. That’s how I ended up here. I had a plan and everything and then you showed up and I just... you messed with my mind so much. I love you so much, Loki, please, please, I missed you.”

“You do not love me, you love your Loki,” Loki said softly, “You came here to take our tesseract, correct?”

“I can... I can return it... when we’re done with everything. So it doesn’t rip through the fabrics of the universes and shit like that.”

“Perhaps we can discuss the circumstances of the tesseract tomorrow. You have been through so much, Tony Stark, you should sleep first.”

“Anthony, Lokes, call me Anthony...” Tony begged him.

Loki gave him a pained look but relented. “Okay, Anthony. Do you want to sleep here?”

“I’d like that...” Tony said softly. He looked Loki in the eyes then dropped his gaze down to his lips. “Can I... can I kiss you? Just this once...”

“Would that not pain you more?”

“I don’t care,” Tony pleaded.

“If it is what you need,” Loki murmured. Tony gratefully leaned forward and kissed him with so much longing. He’s missed this _so, so _much. But the bliss didn’t last long when Loki bent lower just to kiss him instead of lifting him up like _his _Loki did.

He detached from Loki then awkwardly motioned to the bed. “Thank you. We should probably sleep...”

“Let us,” Loki nodded, “Then tomorrow, you will save your universe.”

“You would... let me take the tesseract just like that?”

“I am... drawn to you. I trust you though I have just met you. I think it is because the multiverse has declared us soulmates in every iteration,” Loki said as they climbed into bed, “There are soulmates who exist throughout every universe and I believe we are one of them. And if your Loki has declared you worthy of a golden apple and of his love, I believe you are more than just a simple warrior. I believe that you will succeed and I hope to be able to help you save the universe you live is. So long as the tesseract gets back here, it will be fine.”

“You know I can’t promise that, right? That it’ll all work out.”

“Nevertheless, I believe in the Tony Stark that your Loki believed in,” Loki smiled, “Now, sleep, Anthony. You deserve it.”

\--- --- ---

They’re standing in the vaults and Tony put the tesseract in a bag. He was wearing his human clothes and had the GPS in his hand and with just one click, he’d be on his way. He set the tesseract on the ground and went over to give Loki a tight hug.

“Thank you for everything.”

Loki ruffled his hair. “I have not done much.”

“You’ve done more than enough... you know, there’s a Tony in this universe that’s probably lonely. That’s my consistent trait, you know? My recklessness and loneliness. But if you can find him, that will be great. He needs you. My Loki... he saved me, okay? I wish I had done more to keep him alive...”

“I will try to find him. If it were meant to be, I am sure the Norns have already intertwined my fate with his,” Loki said, “I am sure you had done everything in your power to keep your Loki alive, Anthony.”

“Yet it still wasn’t enough.”

Loki hugged him and Tony buried his face in his neck. “I wish I could stay here. Stay with you. But I can’t.”

“You must go back to your universe,” Loki agreed, “You will be fine. Stay strong, Anthony. Your Loki awaits you in Valhalla.”

Tony shook his head. “Loki never wanted to go to Valhalla. He always said he would turn away from Valhalla if he stood at its doors.”

Loki made a noise of surprise and Tony was once again reminded of how this wasn’t the Loki he really knew. Loki rephrased, though. “If not Valhalla, then he shall await in Helheim with his daughter. Knowing myself, he will wait until you make your choice.”

“It’s always going to be him. It’s always been him. You.”

“Not me,” Loki murmured, “He and I may look the same, but I am not the Loki you fell in love with. All the more reason you cannot stay here.”

“I’ll see you again when I return the tesseract,” Tony kissed him on the cheek, “Don’t miss me too much.”

Loki laughed. “I do hope to see you again, Anthony. You have certainly been a delight.”

“I know,” Tony faltered, “Find him, yeah? Tony Stark.”

“I shall try.”

“He needs you.”

Loki nodded in understanding. “I may need him too.”

“Goodbye, Loki,” Tony hugged him one last time and then let go, picking up the tesseract.

“Goodbye and good luck, Anthony.”

\--- --- --- 

Loki’s wards warned him of the intrusion in the vaults and he smiled, using his magic to appear in front of the intruder. It had been ten years in his timeline but he still remembered the Anthony from the different universe that had come to visit him before. However, to his surprise, it wasn’t the face that resembled his lover but instead an unfamiliar blonde stared back at him.

“You must be King Loki in this universe. Tony told me about you,” the blonde said, “I’m Steve Rogers.”

“Are you his teammate?” Loki asked.

“Was,” Steve said, clearing his throat, “He... uh, he died. He used the stones and couldn’t take its power... That’s why I’m the one returning the space stone.”

“I see,” Loki hummed, “He shall be reunited with his Loki, then.”

“Well,” Steve furrowed his eyebrows, “I didn’t think of it that way but I guess you’re right. That’s good, right?”

Loki smiled. “He will be very happy.”

“When he was building the gauntlet, he kept telling the team he wanted to know if you found your own Tony here,” Steve began awkwardly and scratched the back of his neck, “So if it’s not wrong to ask... have you?”

“I have,” Loki’s smile widened at the thought of _his _Anthony. They had met in Alfheim while Loki was visiting the royal court. Anthony was a blacksmith there and Loki had come across his stall in the market. “He resides with me now. Do you wish to meet him?”

“Does he know... about the whole multiverse thing?”

“He does.”

Steve glanced at the tesseract in his hand then shrugged. “I guess it won’t hurt to speak with him for a bit.”

“Come along, then, Rogers,” Loki turned around, leading the way up.

Steve fell into stride next to him. “What’s this Tony like?”

“For one, he is an elf,” Loki chuckled, “However, that’s where their differences end.”

“Still a genius then?”

“Very much so.”

**Author's Note:**

> ngl this was supposed to be angstier than it is


End file.
